Event Details

This annual, growing event - unique to all of Silicon Valley - works to strengthen the voices and skills of neighborhood residents in Santa Clara County. The NDTC features quality workshops taught by practitioners and instructors who have experience in improving local communities. The NDTC also offers a resource fair, a guest speaker and a luncheon.

Course Description: This workshop is for people who want to live in a neighborhood and a city that works for all its citizens, and who have the faith and energy to create such a place. Participants will engage in a conversation about how creating room for dissent, focusing on possibilities and gifts as opposed to problem-solving and weaknesses can build strong organizational capacity

Presenter: Ron Dwyer-Voss, President and Executive Director of Pacific Community Solutions Inc.

About the Presenter: Ron Dwyer-Voss is a NeighborWorks certified instructor and owner and founder of Pacific Community Solutions Inc., a training and technical assistance company focused on working with community based initiatives, nonprofit organizations and local governments. He has worked as a community organizer, community development corporation director, affordable housing specialist, leadership development coach and a trainer. He was also elected and served eight years on his local school board.

NDTC 2: Building Leaders, Building Communities: Leadership in Real Life (M) (A)

Course Description: Discover whyleadership development is most successful when it provides concrete toolsto build strong communities, how to deal with conflict in a healthy way by respecting differences, and how to allow for peaceful disagreements while also addressing deep seated issues that communities face.

About the Presenter: James Johnson provides training and technical assistance nationally to resident leaders, grassroots organizations, and national intermediaries such as NeighborWorks, Habitat for Humanity International, and LISC. Currently, Johnson is the Director of SUN Consulting and Associates. He brings a wealth of experience in designing training and curriculum to fit local needs, empowering local residents and organizations to work together through partnerships and building community power

NDTC 3: Engaging Residents in Sustainable Living Practices (M) (A)

Course Description: Learn how to bring neighbors and partners together towards developing a communal vision, strategies and early actions to create a Greener future for all. This course will cover urban gardens & fresh food access; as well as walk-a-bility. Participants will learn about program design, community engagement tactics, outreach & communication strategy and partnership development. Presentation, discussion and peer-learning will provide action steps to help your team get started.

About the Presenter: Samantha Brockfield specializes in community engagement, green development proposal writing and program analysis. She has over five years of experience in volunteer management, journalism, communications, program administration, community organizing, and leadership development. Brockfield has a Bachelor’s of Urban Planning from University of Cincinnati and received the 2011 Faculty Award from University of Cincinnati School of Planning for her thesis entitled “The Role of Organizing in Sustainable Community Development”.

NDTC 4: Celebrating Differences in Our Community: Building Bridges Across the Lines of Race, Age, Gender and Ethnicity (M) (A)

Course Description: Diversity strengthens our communities by bringing different views, backgrounds, languages, races and orientation into our communities and into our work. Often, differences are met as a challenge instead of an opportunity, due to factors such as lack of information, stereotypes and limited personal experiences with other groups. In this workshop, you will examine ways to reach out and build bridges to members of different groups. We will also discuss ways that diversity strengthens our communities, and learn ways to recognize and celebrate the power this brings.

Presenter: Susan Naimark, Community Builder and Trainer

About the Presenter: Susan Naimark is a Boston-based consultant and trainer whose work focuses on capacity building for community-based organizations, nonprofit and public agencies in the areas of community building, public education and racial justice organizing. She has served in leadership roles in several nonprofit community development organizations, most recently as Director of NeighborWorks® National Community Building and Organizing Programs. Naimark is the author of The Education of a White Parent (Levellers Press, 2012) and currently serves as Board Chair of the Boston Parent Organizing Network and Community Change, Inc.

NDTC 5: Organizing for Neighborhood Safety (M) (A)

Course Description: Explore innovative efforts taking place around the country that help fight crime and create a better sense of community. The SJPD Crime Prevention Unit works with community members to improve community safety by sharing information about Neighborhood Watch, neighborhood crime issues and discussing ideas and tips on how to prevent them. This workshop highlights the Crime Free Multi-Housing Program, a law enforcement based crime prevention program designed to help keep illegal activity away from multi-unit rental properties. In addition, guest representatives from various city departments and agencies will contribute to a panel discussion to share how their work supports crime prevention and neighborhood safety.

Presenter: Mini Le, SJPD Crime Prevention Specialist

About the Presenter: Mini Le has worked as a Crime Prevention Specialist with the San Jose Police Department for 17 years. She helped to create and instruct Challenges and Choices, a violence prevention program for elementary and middle school students. Mini conducts Neighborhood Watch meetings and safety education seminars on topics such as Personal Safety, Gang Prevention, Child Safety, Bullying Prevention and Senior Safety to community members of all ages. She is currently the Police Department's contact person for National Night Out.

NDTC 6: Strategies for Improving Your Neighborhood Meetings (M) (A)

Course Description: Is your meeting attendance down? In this workshop you will explore the various neighborhood meeting alternatives to gathering the neighbors together – National Night Out, block parties, driveway parties, movie nights, parades, progressive dinners, ice cream socials, and more. If last month’s minutes, Robert’s Rules, and formal agendas are not helping to get neighbors in the room, come learn how to work business into this social mix, and how these meeting alternatives can improve your ability to connect with neighbors.

Presenters:Julie Reynolds-Grabbe and Lori Kahn

About the Presenters: Julie Reynolds-Grabbe has been a resident of West San Jose for 13 years and was one of the founding members of the successful Easterbrook Neighborhood Association in 2007. She has been a member of the San Jose District 1 Leadership Group and was recently named Vice Chair of the group of the Easterbrook Discovery School Parent Teacher Organization. Reynolds-Grabbe is passionate about building a safe and vibrant community where neighbors look out for each other. Lori Kahn has been a resident of San Jose for 12 years and co-founded the Primrose neighborhood association in 2002. She has held president, vice-president, secretary, and membership director positions within her neighborhood and mentored subsequent leaders within the association. Kahn has been a member of the District 1 leadership group since 2007. She is passionate about bringing neighbors of various backgrounds together in order to build a community that is safe and can support each other in the event of a disaster.

NDTC 7: Online Networking in Your Neighborhood: Make it Work (M) (A)

Course Description: The Internet has become the most widely used method of communications and a vital watchdog tool for civic engagement. Explore the many ways to connect online with your neighbors, community groups and elected officials to stay informed and engaged without being overwhelmed. Learn how to effectively deliver your message to a wider audience and the media.

Presenter:Janice Rombeck, Editor and Publisher of NeighborWebSJ

About the Presenter: Janice Rombeck is a veteran newspaper journalist, with 22 years at the San Jose Mercury News as copy editor, community editor and City Hall reporter covering neighborhoods. Rombeck is the editor and publisher of NeighborWebSJ, an online community news site dedicated to connecting neighborhoods to each other and to City Hall. She worked two years as communications officer at the San Jose Redevelopment Agency assigned to the Strong Neighborhoods team. Along with publishing NeighborWebSJ, Janice is a free-lancer writer and editor and conducts communications skills workshops for neighborhood leaders.

NDTC 8: Building Powerful Community Partnerships and Collaborations (M) (A)

Couse Description: Learnhow community partnerships and collaborations work effectively to engage people of all ages to contribute to their community. Learn life skills, develop self-sufficiency, and break the cycle of poverty. Contribute to the discussion on how community partnerships bring a more comprehensive vision, increase accountability and achieve a wider base of support for their efforts by maximizing the member power and improving access to policy makers, the media and the public.

Presenter: Ali Barekat, Executive Director, Sunday Friends

About the Presenter: Ali Barekat has 25 years of business leadership and product development experience at start-up companies focused on web, enterprise, and mobile software products and services. He holds a B.S. and M.S. degree in Computer Science from the University of Louisiana. In January 2012, Barekat decided to redirect his skills and expertise that were gained in the for-profit world to the nonprofit world by applying those skills to lead Sunday Friends in expanding its successful programs to multiple sites.

NDTC 9: Homelessness and Poverty: How It Affects All of Us (M) (A)

Course Description:The nation's economic crisis has deeply affected the lives of millions of Americans. Skyrocketing foreclosures and job layoffs have pulled the rug out from under many families, particularly those living in low income communities. Deepening poverty is inextricably linked with rising levels of homelessness and hunger for many Americans especially children. In this workshop you will learn the reality of homelessness in Silicon Valley and how to join efforts to reduce its numbers.

About the Presenters: Poncho Guevara is the Executive Director of Sacred Heart Community Service, one of the leading grassroots antipoverty organizations in Silicon Valley. Guevara's professional career has been geared toward the advancement of low-income families from providing direct services and community organizing, to serving in executive management roles in nonprofit housing and human service organizations. His experience has reinforced his dedication to creating systemic approaches to poverty through a combination of investments in human services and advocacy for wider public policy solutions. By cultivating and creating bridges between diverse constituencies, he has helped develop and lead campaigns on critical issues in workforce development, children’s health care, homelessness, affordable housing, and minimum wage.

NDTC 10: Understanding Resident Participatory Budgeting (A)

Course Description: Interested in learning about Participatory Budgeting (PB)? PB is a process of democratic dialogue and deliberation that enables residents to make decisions about how to spend public money in their communities. PB is changing cities around the globe by changing the way public money is spent. It has proven to be effective in increasing government transparency and accountability, and levels of public participation (especially by low income residents). PB allows citizens to identify, discuss and prioritize public spending projects, and gives them the power to make real decisions about how money is spent in their cities.

About the Presenter: Shawn Spano, Ph.D. is a Professor in the Communication Studies Department at San José State University. He teaches courses and conducts applied research in public dialogue and small group and interpersonal communication. In addition to his university position, Spano is a communication consultant and founding member of the Public Dialogue Consortium, www.publicdialogue.org, a non-profit group devoted to improving the quality of communication in public organizations and local communities. He has 20 years of experience working with local city government organizations. Spano was selected “SJSU Outstanding Professor” at SJSU in 2000, and has published numerous articles and chapters, including the book, Public Dialogue and Participatory Democracy: The Cupertino Community Project (Hampton Press).